Costly Mistakes
by honalooloo
Summary: ONE-SHOT. Set directly after Series 3, Episode 11 of CBBC's Young Dracula. Erin's betrayal has hit Vlad hard, and it looks as if she will be leaving Garside for the final time. She has made herself homeless, friendless- and all because of one costly mistake...


_DISCLAIMER: I own none of the Young Dracula characters or locations etc. The only thing I own is the plot of the story._

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: So here is my fourth FanFiction, and second one-shot. I wrote my first a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed it, so I decided to chronicle my own version of what happened after Vlad sent Erin away in Series 3, Episode 11. I really loved that argument scene- I thought it was fantastically well-acted by Gerran and Sydney. I adore writing from Erin's POV, so here is a quick little interpretation of what happened after Erin walked out of Vlad's line of sight. Enjoy!_

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Erin walked quickly, her hands dug into the pockets of her tatty green coat as her footsteps echoed around the deserted courtyard. She felt a prickling on the back of her neck. She knew Vlad would be standing at his bedroom window, his eyes following her as she made her way to the garage, but she resisted the urge to look back.

She didn't want to see him. She never wanted to see another vampire ever again.

She wrenched the garage door open with uncharacteristic venom, hot, angry tears spilling down her cheeks. It wasn't fair. She had had to lie to protect herself, to protect her brother- it wasn't like it had been an attempt to seize Vlad's power or stake him in the back. It was _Ingrid_ who had betrayed him, with that ridiculous vampette posse of hers. It was always Ingrid. She double-crossed Vlad again and again yet he still saw fit to keep forgiving her.

Erin stopped, her hand frozen on the car door.

What was wrong with her?

Was she really so childish, so selfish, so emotionally unconnected to be able to convince herself of her own innocence? Yes, Ingrid was only ever in anything for herself, but at least she made no qualms about it (usually, anyway). Yet she, Erin, had hidden her darkest secret from Vlad, even when he had told her his own.

And that had been when they had barely known each other. Erin had only been at Garside for a few weeks when Vlad had confided in her; he, mistakenly, obviously, had placed his trust in her without even knowing who she was or anything about her.

But Erin, despite being Vlad's girlfriend, had neglected to do the same. She, out of a pathological fear of rejection, had kept her cards close to her chest and tried to pretend that Vlad would never find out. That the secret would stay hidden forever.

But secrets have a certain habit of getting out, and Erin had known in her heart that it would only be a matter of time before Vlad discovered the truth. And the longer it took him, the worse it would be when he did. She hadn't gone as far as Ingrid- she had never attempted to slay Vlad (not properly, anyway, not really)- but she had to accept some responsibility. She had never been truly honest with him. Vlad expected deviance from Ingrid, but he had trusted Erin, despite the warnings from his father and tutor.

And it seemed that they had been proved right.

Erin sat down heavily in the driver's seat, whacking the heater up full blast to try and combat the chilly November air. She could see her breath rising in front of her in small, opaque clouds before melting into nothingness. She remembered how, as a child, she and Ryan had blown these clouds into each other's faces as they walked to school, like some wintery bubble-gum blowing contest. Her fingers hesitated on the ignition. Was this really the right thing to do? Shouldn't she go back in there, fight her corner once again, apologise to Vlad once more in the hope that he would forgive her one more time? She half rose out of her seat, before catching sight of her reflection in the rear-view mirror.

Her eyes were red and puffy from crying, the dark circles below them testament to how uncomfortable it was for breathers to sleep in coffins. Her cheeks had been flushed by the bitter wind, at utter antithesis with the rest of her pale skin. She had been indoors too long, she realised- the sunlight hadn't warmed her face in weeks.

No. Living with the Draculas had been a mistake. A huge, ridiculous, almost comical mistake. She was a breather. They were vampires. It was a miracle that, after two months, she was still alive, let alone still in her mortal state. Her judgement had been clouded by grief, her common sense replaced with desperation; Ryan had been all she'd had. Her relationship with her parents was rocky at best- they just didn't _understand_ that slaying wasn't her only option. Erin's dyslexia made things difficult for her, of course, but did that mean she should just give up and stop trying to make her own way? Erin felt another pang of guilt as she realised that Vlad, of all people, knew exactly how that felt. To be pushed in a direction you didn't want to go, just to try and fulfil other people's expectations.

Erin started the ignition, twisting the key with renewed vigour. The car sputtered for a moment before roaring into the life. The engine would be sound enough to get her safely away from Garside, but then where would she go? Not home, and not to Ryan, either- she knew he'd never forgive himself if he lost control and bit her. The last time she had seen him he had been, to all intents and purposes, fully-fledged. The old ache resurfaced, pushing its way through her current pain, as she realised that her last chance of saving him from the fangs of the undead was now extinct.

Erin sighed bitterly, tugging at her seatbelt. Fresh tears welled up at the back of her eyes at the thought that she'd probably never see Vlad again, but she blinked them back fiercely. The mistake had been hers, and she'd have to live with it.

If only it hadn't been such a costly one.

_FIN_

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: Any feedback is much appreciated and greatly valued. If you enjoyed this then please check out my other fics. Thank you!_


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